After the fairytale
by Chloe Smith2
Summary: Christian and Ana have been divorced for 10 years and she is now living with Jose. It was an ugly divorce and she has full custody of the children. What really happened? Why did Christian allow it? Can they move on with their lives without destroying the children in the process? Is there any love left between them?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclamer: Don't own the characters! Just borrowing them…**

**A/N1: Just an angst piece I've been mulling over. Christian and Ana have been divorced for 10 years and she is now living with Jose. It was an ugly divorce and she has full custody of the children. What really happened? Why did Christian allow it? Can they move on with their lives without destroying the children in the process? Is there any love left between them?**

**A/N2: Ana is kind of a bitch for no reason in the beginning, but it will all become clear in the next chapters.**

**After the fairytale**

**Chapter 1**

"I'm gonna live with Dad" 14-year old Phoebe states to her mother, her gaze firm, challenging Ana to oppose her.

Ever since Phoebe entered her teens, that's how their lives have been, one dispute after another. It didn't help that she was the teenage daughter of a nasty divorce.

Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey have been divorced for 10 years now, it obviously hasn't been a smooth sail for any of them, one constantly blaming the other for the fall out.

"The hell you are!" Ana simply glared at her younger child, a cold stare that she didn't possess before she met the almighty Christian Grey. "In case you forgot, yet again, I have full custody of you and your brother and until I die or you hit 18, it's with me you stay! Whichever comes first!", she responded in the same icy tone Phoebe was using with her and simply turned around and left the room, not wanting to get into the reason they were having this argument. She knew they had to talk about what happened…but later.

Sometimes Ana didn't recognize herself…never in her life she would've thought she would be talking to someone like that. Let alone her own child, her youngest nonetheless. But life made her change. And she blamed it all on Christian, and at that point, it didn't matter if she was being fair or not.

Phoebe just froze in her place and watched her mother leave. "Who is the woman my mother has become?" she asked herself. Not that she remembered much before the divorce, of course she was only 4 at the time, but she remembered being loved, safe, protected by a mom and a dad at home. Now she felt she had nothing.

"You know, you shouldn't hurt Mom like that", a quiet Teddy spoke behind her, making her jump a little.

"You scared me, you creep!" she says to her brother through gritted teeth. "And what the hell do you think you know about all this? Hurt Mom? You make me laugh…she's the one who's making us all hurt. Especially Dad", she spat at her brother. He could be older, but there was no doubt who the feisty one was.

Teddy was 6 when their parents split up, 2 years older than Phoebe, and just because of that he thought he knew better.

"You don't know what you're talking about Phoebe. You don't remember what it was like", he tried to reason.

"As if you do! Why don't you enlighten me, oh wise brother?" she dared him. Seeing him slump his shoulders and start to stutter, she just glared at him and muttered "I thought so"…she eyed her brother chicken out one last time before she left the room muttering to herself "Momma's boy"…

The Grey children turned out quite different from the kids they once were. At 16, Teddy seemed younger than his years. Not that there was something wrong physically. He was past 6' tall, almost as tall as his father, and despite his complete disinterest in sports, he was built and fit. In other words, a carbon copy of Christian, except for his blue eyes, the only physical resemblance to his mother. What made him look younger was the way he carried himself, slouched shoulders, vague eyes, insecure of every move. He was a far cry from the vivacious kid he once has been.

Phoebe, on the other hand, was her mother all over; from the color of her hair to her pale complexion. Her eyes were Christian's, though. In them you could see her sagacity, her feistiness, a no-bullshit approach to life. Personality wise she was all Christian. She inherited his shrewdness, his ruthlessness and, worse of all, his temper. But while Christian was mercurial, as his ex-wife liked to point out all the time, when Phoebe got angry, she kept being angry for a long time. The only person that could get through her was Grace, her paternal grandmother. But as the kids were growing older, she felt like her mother went out of her way to keep Grace and Carrick away from her and Teddy. Another sore point of the divorce.

Their life-style has changed dramatically as well. Long gone was the mansion by the Sound, the cars and luxury cars, clothes and toys; they now lived in a comfortable, yet small 3-bedroom apartment with Ana and her live-in boyfriend, Jose. After the divorce, Ana refused to take any money from Christian, claiming it didn't belong to her. He insisted in supporting his children fully, allotting them a hefty child support, but as far as he knew, the money was never totally used. Even the pocket money he gave the children when they were visiting, which was nothing short of thousands of dollars a week, was confiscated. Ana claimed that everything her children had, she had to provide for half of it. If she couldn't afford it, they wouldn't have it. This, of course, infuriated Christian, but as Ana was the primary care taker, his hands were tied.

Ana was an editor at a small publishing company in Seattle, Kendriks Books. She quit Grey Publishing and worked her way up at Kendriks. They favored local alternative writers, giving a chance to those rejected by larger publishing houses. Their books varied from esoteric guides and astrology to macrobiotic cooking. Certainly not titles Grey Publishing would de interested in. Out were the power-suits she had to wear as a hot shot CEO; in were the flowing skirts and peasant tops she now sported to work.

The only monetary exception that Ana allowed was regarding the children's education. Both Teddy and Phoebe attended Lakeside School, the most expensive and exclusive private school in Seattle; the tuitions were provided by Christian alone. Academically, they thrived. Teddy was far ahead in his curriculum and was a total science geek, taking some classes with senior students. His teachers could see him on his way to medical school. Phoebe's accomplishments were nothing shorter. Despite being 14, she was already a sophomore in high school. Different from her brother, who preferred to spend his days in a science lab dissecting a frog, Phoebe had her father's business skills. She was brilliant in financial math and economics. Christian could see her taking over Grey Enterprises Holdings someday.

But what they exceeded in brains, they lacked in social skills. It was hard going to an exclusive school and being forced to live in a short budget. Again, Ana's 50% rule was enforced, so cultural excursions to Europe or winter break trips to Aspen were out of their reality. The same went for clothes and gadgets. While Phoebe's classmates sported their brand new Birkin bags, she resigned herself to her old Jansport backpack. Not that she really cared what other kids thought about her, but sometimes she really wished to have nice things, like her cousin Ava, who attended the same school, did.

When they were little Phoebe and Ava were the best of friends. They did everything together, had sleepovers and just enjoyed being together. Ava was the only daughter of Elliot and Kate. Ana didn't keep any bonds with the Grey's, but Kate was an old friend from college, so she was off the hook.

As they hit their teen years, as every girl, Ava started to get into clothes, make up, shoes and stuff…things Phoebe wasn't allowed to have. When Phoebe was with Ava and her socialite friends, she felt like an outsider, just glimpsing at a life she wish she could have. It sounded absurd when her father was a multi-billionaire, one of the richest men in the world.

Aggravated by her fight with her mother, Phoebe decided to call her father. He picked up on the second ring.

"Hi, munchkin!" her father greeted her with the childhood nickname he still used

"Hey, Dad", she replied not so enthusiastically

"Phoebe, what's wrong? Something happened to you or your brother?" Christian's tone now of a concerned parent.

"It's nothing Dad, it's just…" she started to cry quietly, unable to complete her thought.

"Phoebe, sweetie, calm down. Please tell me what happened" he was now into total worried father mode.

"It's Mom again, Dad". He should've predicted it was yet another fight between his daughter and ex-wife.

"Honey, we've talked about it thousands of times before. Your mother is your primary care taker. I stretch my limits to what is legally possible, but sometimes we just have to accept her decisions. My hands are tied until you turn 18" he says sadly

"But why is that?" she was now losing all control…"You have the best legal team money can buy, I know for a fact you make the law work your way when it comes to your business, why can't you make an extra effort when it comes to your own children? Why Dad? Aren't we more valuable to you than your damn companies?" she screamed into the phone, sobbing like a child.

"Hush, hush baby", he was chanting quietly over and over. Christian knew that it was the only thing he could do to calm her down over the phone.

It broke his heart every time he saw Phoebe breaking down in a hysterical cry. The same went when he saw how weak and insecure Teddy has become over the years. The moment they were born he vowed to himself to be a real father to his children, to make sure they were always safe and happy, to protect them from all the bad in the world. But like his own birth mother had done to him, he failed his children. Clearly the weekends he had with his kids every other week weren't enough. He wanted to be there for them. He needed to be there for them!

He and Ana sure made a mess of their lives…and the children were paying the price. He hated that he hadn't seen it coming when she filed for a divorce. He blamed himself more than anything. Once again, his past was coming around to bite him in the ass…

He should've seen the signs; when they were young he prided himself that he could read her like a book. Well, not anymore obviously.

Phoebe's piercing cries brought him back to the present.

"Honey, please calm down and talk to me. I'll try to make it better, but you need to tell me what happened this time" he pleaded with his daughter

"Well, Dad, I'm guessing you haven't read the papers yet"

_**Please, let me know what you think!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you so much for all the feedback! The repercussion was really beyond my wildest expectations! I appreciate all your comments, even from people who feel the story is too sad, but appreciate my writing. I'll try to update more often, but an all consuming job and several business trips do get in the way **

**After the fairytale**

**Chapter 2**

"What the fuck were you thinking?!" Christian screamed, the Seattle Star being crumpled in his big hands. Ana glared at him, while Phoebe just looked embarrassed.

There, on the front page, was a picture of Phoebe on her knees at a fast-food restaurant, what looked like a milk-shake being poured on her head by a bitch-looking teenage girl. The headline _Reverse Cinderella-Phoebe Grey's Tale of Woe_ in black, bold, block letters imprinted on her mind forever. Well, at least the journalist seemed well read, quoting from Jane Eyre, Phoebe thought wistfully…

It wasn't the first time one of the children was on the paper, their father being Christian Grey. Especially right after the divorce the tabloids speculated to no end why a marriage that seemed perfect ended the way it did. But as hateful as those articles were, this one went all out in cruelty level.

_Still wondering what the daughter of one of the most powerful CEOs in America is doing working as a waitress? Well, the answer might be in the word **daughter**. Sources close to Christian Grey, CEO of Grey Enterprises Holdings and again top eligible bachelor in Seattle, hint at the possibility of the very Phoebe Grey not being his biological daughter. It seems that the reason little Ms. Anastasia Steele ended up with nothing in the divorce was a torrid affair with a certain latino friend, which resulted in a very much unwanted pregnancy. True to fact, Miss Phoebe resembles nothing of Mr. Grey, contrary to her brother Teddy, Grey's oldest child, who is a Christian Grey mini me. Although the children attend Lakeside School, their fellow classmates attest they could be mistaken by scholarship kids. "They don't wear designer clothes and don't have nice computers and stuff…oh, and they can never afford extra curricular outings as well", says a girl in Phoebe's class. Just to clarify, Lakeside's outings are normally in other continents._

_Seattle Star found out that indeed the former Mrs. Grey is leading a life far from glamorous. She and her brood live in a modest apartment near Lake Union, where they share their space with a certain latino boyfriend. Coincidence? The Star doesn't think so…_

_It seems that the vast Grey kingdom has only one heir after all._

"Either one of you care to explain what happened?" Christian demanded, bringing Phoebe back from her reverie. The three of them were seated in the living room of Ana's apartment later that day. Much to Christian's dismay, she has never set foot in his new house in Bellevue, a few blocks away form his parents'. After Ana and the children left, he couldn't continue living in the house by the Sound. Everywhere he looked, he could see his children laughing, playing with their toys, just being happy. He couldn't stand going back to Escala as well, too many memories of him and Ana falling in love, beginning their lives. The ghosts were there, mocking him, spitting venomous words at his face: you failed them, failure, failure, failure…

Shaking his head to get rid of those unwelcoming thoughts, he stared back at his daughter.

"Well? I'm waiting"

"I needed the job", Phoebe mumbled, as if that was enough explanation for her wearing the milk shake on her head.

Christian looked at her not knowing what to say. It was preposterous for him that one of his kids would humiliate themselves because of money, when he could simply fix any kind of financial problems they had. Of course Ana was an obstacle when it came to it, but he suspected it was not the only reason Phoebe had gone through that…One look at Ana and he knew this was not exactly news to her. He hated being the last to know! Fucking hated the lack of control!

"What for? You know I could easily..."

"Ha, throwing money at them is always the answer for you, right Christian?" Ana interrupted him. He had to count to 10 not to let the impulse of wringing her neck overcome him.

"As I was saying, I could easily help you if you needed the money for something important, and I'm sure _your mother_ and I", he emphasized her participation, "would be very understanding if you had the need of allowance complementation".

"I didn't say I needed the money, I said I needed the job", she clarified, knowing there was no way out of telling the truth. "At least that was what Mr. Sanders told me"

"Sanders? Your grandfather's friend Sanders? Why on hell did you talk to him? Ana, did you know any of this?" Christian stands up, running his hands through his hair, showing his ex-wife just how exasperated he was feeling.

Ana was not really in the mood to justify anything to her ex-husband, but relented to avoid a shouting match.

"I knew about the job, not about the Mr. Sanders part. Phoebe forged my signature on her application form to be able to work there, since she's under 16. The owner suspected and called me to check. Once he found out, he wanted to fire her, but I assured him that her working there was OK with me".

"Phoebe! Did you know that forging your mother's signature is a crime? I expected more from you", Christian reprimanded his daughter. "And why didn't you tell me Ana? I was under the impression that anything related to our children concerned us both".

"I'm their primary care taker, Christian, I owe you no explanation! Let's not get into this topic again. Besides, I thought the job was character building. Not everyone has their lives served on a silver platter"

"Low blow, Ana, and you know it. I've worked my ass off my whole life to get where I am now, I was handed nothing. You know where I come from, don't pretend to be ignorant that I went to hell and back". Hearing Christian say that, Ana at least looked contrite.

Phoebe looked from one parent to the other and wondered what they were talking about. She knew his father was adopted by her grandparents when he was a little child, the same went for her uncle Elliot and aunt Mia, but beyond that, nobody ever said a word. The few times she mentioned something related to her father's toddler years, everyone went quiet and quickly tried to change the subject.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that". Her mother apologizing to her father? Surely there was something amiss there.

Christian looked resigned and continued to address his daughter in a stern tone

"Phoebe, you know that I'm all for applying yourself and being the best that you can. But faking your mother's signature to get a waitressing job is far from honorable behavior…and if you really wanted to work, I'm certain I could use you at GEH"

In the middle of his lecture his Blackberry rang…Ana just snickered. Work always came first for the almighty Christian Grey. Before her, even before the children. Phoebe exhaled, relieved for the reprieve.

"Grey", Christian groaned. "Yes, Sam, I'm talking to her right now…no, no fucking statements from my daughter! I don't care, I just want these fuckers out! Damage control, damn it! I'll buy the fucking paper if I have to!" and he slammed the phone on the poor's guy face.

Christian sat down again, rubbing his face in his hands, trying to stay focused. This was a fucking nightmare.

"That was Sam, my head of PR. He's trying to fix this whole mess with the paper…fucking liars". "Anyway, back to you Phoebe. Why on earth do you need a lawyer? I assume that's why you looked for Mr. Sanders, correct? And you expected to afford this kind of lawyer with a minimum wage waitressing salary?"

This was information that Ana didn't know and it picked her curiosity. What was her daughter doing behind her back? Getting a job at the diner behind Christian's back was kind of funny, but she had to admit that not knowing what Phoebe was up to infuriated her. They never had the smoothest mother-daughter relationship, Teddy was a much easier child to get along with. But since she became old enough to understand her family's situation, Phoebe started to ask more and more questions, to defy her decisions

Feeling patronized, Phoebe decides to lay all cards on the table, no use to holding back the truth now.

"Of course not", she snorted, "I'm not stupid".

"Well?", Christian prompted her to go on

"I needed a job to be an emancipated minor!" she spat at both her parents, Ana looking intensively at her, this piece of information grabbing her attention.

It was now her turn to interrogate her daughter, "What the hell does it mean? Who put this idea in that head of yours?"

"Nobody! I've made some research and found out I could file a petition suing you guys to be emancipated. I needed a hot shot lawyer who specialized in family law and I kinda, sort of milked the information from Grandpa. That's how I found Mr. Sanders".

Despite the horrible context, Christian's lips turned up a little, picturing his tenacious daughter getting her way with his lawyer dad. That girl was really something else

"I've met Mr. Sanders in one of your grandmother's fund raisers. Solid guy, honest to a fault. How come he didn't tell me or your grandfather what you were up to?" he asked frustrated, loosening his burgundy tie and unbuttoning the top buttons on his immaculate white dress shirt. His dark grey suit jacket sprawled over one of the chairs.

"Attorney-Client confidentiality, of course".

"You're a minor, any contract you signed with him is null and void".

"Not if he accepted his fees prior to hearing the case and if there was no legal impediment on why he could become my attorney".

Ana watched the exchange flabbergasted, like watching a tennis match. Where on earth her daughter learned all that stuff? She was arguing with Christian as an equal opponent!

"But he could always recuse himself, being a friend of the family he can not be the most objective person in this case."

"He's not the judge, he's my attorney Dad. The rule applies to judges. I don't want him to be uninterested; I need him on my side, arguing my case"

Christian admitted defeat. He just slouched his shoulders and tried to understand the mess they got themselves into. Her looking for a lawyer to sue her own parents was wrong in so many ways that he didn't even want to start counting.

Ana hid her smirk and mentally counted the score: Phoebe 1x0 Christian.

"OK, moving on…how did you make him accept the money without him knowing what the case was? All lawyers talk to their clients before taking them on".

Phoebe shifted in her seat, now somewhat uncomfortable to tell the next part. This can't be good, Christian thought to himself.

"Well, I made it seem like a donation to his cause, the Psychological Child Abuse one" Christian remembered the charity, having him contributed himself in several occasions.

"How did you make a fee payment look like a donation, Phoebe?"

"I wrote a testimony of a girl who's been suffering for years, caught in the middle of a war between her parents". Both Ana and Christian paled as they recognized their daughter as the protagonist of this tale. Phoebe didn't mind her parents and continued with her story, her eyes glassy, as if she was not even seeing them in the room.

"She was uprooted from a life she knew and forced to live a completely different life from hers. The problem was that she still had strong ties with her old life: school, family, a household name, and pressure to achieve the same goals. She felt awkward with the other kids in school, not knowing her place there anymore. All kids seemed to have so much, and her so little. Not only money and toys and gifts, but love and security. This girl went from 100 to 0 in a nanosecond; from having it all to having nothing. It was like she was stuck in the Twilight Zone, never knowing how to act, what to hope for".

Ana and Christian were at a loss for words. They knew their family situation wasn't the ideal one, but they had no idea the lengths it went with Phoebe.

Phoebe was on a roll, there was no stopping now, but Christian saw she was exhausting herself, she was trembling now. He made a move to sit next to her, but she just held up her hand to stop him.

"On top of everything, she had to witness her parents bicker for the most stupid things , her mother bring home a boyfriend she barely knew to live with them and verbally slash her father, blaming him for all the evil in the world". Ana visibly winced hearing that part. "She didn't understand why, since she never saw him doing anything wrong! And she felt guilty because she loved her mother, but couldn't be unfair to her father".

She took a deep breath and looked at them both in the eyes, "Sounds familiar?"

Silence.

"Anyway, with the testimony, I also sent a note saying how much I admired the work of his charity and I could only hope more children could be helped by him, especially in legal procedures protecting them from the distress they were submitted by their parents. I enclosed a check for 20 thousand dollars in the envelope and a week later sent him an e-mail asking if he had gotten the money and the testimony and asked for a meeting".

Ana was pale as a ghost, tears leaking down her face, her hands on her mouth, even though no sound could come out of it. She was too shocked at what Phoebe had done. How could a 14-year old girl be so astute and shrewd? It even scared her a little.

"So, you used his confirmation as his agreement to take on your case", Christian finished for her.

"Yes" she admitted shyly. "I met up with him and you were right, he wanted to recuse himself because he was friends with the family".

Christian nodded, felling a little less aggravated towards Sanders and Carrick. How did they let a girl fool two seasoned attorneys?

"I argued my case and he finally agreed, after I threatened to just run away from home and never look back". At this Christian and Ana froze on the spot, their biggest fear coming out of her mouth.

"Phoebe, please, I know things haven't been easy for you, but you should've come talk to us", Ana finally interjected.

Phoebe just snorted and continued "I've been talking, pleading with you to have a better relationship with Dad and let us lead a life that resembles to normalcy for years and you never listen! And you too, Dad, you listen but you never act!" Nothing inaccurate to reality here.

"Mr. Sanders explained to me that I needed to prove I could support myself and make adult decisions about my life. I needed a job and get my high school degree. As it won't happen for 2 more years at Lakeside, I've already signed up for a GED. As for the job, well, you saw it front page of Seattle Star".

Now it was Christian's turn to gasp "A GED Phoebe? You wouldn't stand a chance at any Ivy League with a GED. No matter how high your GPA and SATs are. I thought you wanted to go to Harvard or Dartmouth. And how do you think you can support yourself on a part-time waitress salary?"

At the mention of money, something snapped inside Ana's head.

"Hold on! Before we get into how this ingenious plan will never work, how did you get the money Phoebe? And the check? As far as I know, we never got you one" and she stared pointedly at Christian, hinting that he had somehow provided the funds for this nonsense unknowingly.

"Mom, don't start with the Devil Christian and devil money routine! See, this is one of the reasons I want to be an emancipated minor. I don't want to feel guilty of having money and opportunities, I want to see the world and get as much as I can out of it. I want to live with Dad and you know it".

How could I have not thought of that before? Christian asked himself. His daughter was a fucking genius! If she got the emancipation, Ana wouldn't have a say in her life anymore, they would get rid of the sole custody crap. Christian let out a small laugh and Ana immediately turned to him.

As if reading Christian's mind, she uttered a single word, "Don't!"

"Again, Phoebe, where did you get the money from? If not your father, was it Elliot? Your grandparents? Mia?" Ana could easily see her daughter talking Mia into signing her a check. For the Greys, 20 thousand dollars didn't make a dent in their bank accounts.

"It's my money, ok? I've earned it, fair and square, as a broker at the stock market". "And I have much more from where the 20 thousand came from. Apparently, I have a knack for business" she said derisively.

Once more in that afternoon, Phoebe rendered her parents speechless.

"Don't you need a license to do that kind of business? At least be of legal age? It's not like you were investing your own money in your piggy bank, you were working somebody else's money, Phoebe!" Ana says infuriated. "And I think I know just where you got it."

"Hey, don't look at me again! My company is private owned, we don't even have stocks in the stock exchange" Christian defended himself. Truth is, he and Ros had discussed an IPO, but Christian just couldn't go through with it. It meant more money, but it also meant relinquishing control. And at least in this area of his life he still had total control.

"Yes, you need to be a licensed broker and no, I didn't use anything from GEH or got it from Dad". Phoebe could be reckless sometimes, but she knew better than forge her father signature to start a new business venture. Using her mother's signature to get a low menial job was one thing, but using her father's in the stock market was another league entirely.

"If not him, who helped you out, then? Who signed the papers for you?" Ana insisted

At that moment, the door opens and Jose enters the apartment, unaware of all the tension in the living room.

"Hello, family". Christian flinched at his words. This was not the fucker's family! It was his family, his children!

"What the fuck is going on here?" he asks surprised at the display in front of him, but certain they were discussing some heavy shit. One look at Phoebe and he went aghast "Phoebe? Any tragedy happened?"

Immediately Christian knew the boy had something to do with it. He was above age, at least biologically, if not intellectually, but was dumb enough to get involved into Phoebe's schemes.

He smiled ironically and spoke slowly to Ana.

"Congratulations, Ms. Steele. You're the proud mother of 3 teenagers".

So much to happen! Teddy will be back in the next chapters! And Phoebe will have a heart-to-heart with her parents about the article!


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you guys for keep reading and commenting! I'm really happy that this story picked your interest. Many of you want to know why Christian and Ana got a divorce in the first place. Well, all will be reviewed in due time. Just bear with me a little bit more. Here is a hint: I'm not a big fan of out of reality farfetched story lines, so what happened to Ana could've happened to any young woman.**

**A/N2: No, there was no cheating involved here. I know there are great cheating stories around, but infidelity was never part of my plans. Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**After the fairytale**

**Chapter 3**

It was Thursday afternoon, 3 days after the newspaper fiasco and Phoebe was alone in her room, wrapping gifts to be donated to the Psychological Child Abuse charity. Her hands were almost gnarled by what surely was carpal tunnel syndrome and she felt like she had a million paper cuts on her fingers. First time her parents agreed on something, and it had to be on her punishment.

She was to go one week without her computer, phone, ipod or any electronic device. She couldn't even go to school! Phoebe thrived in her classes and her parents knew that. Going to classes wasn't exactly unpleasant for her as it was for other kids, like her cousin Ava, who was constantly on academic probation.

She couldn't read any books, either, since it was another pleasure of hers…Christian even joked that he was going to make her read his companies' P&L, but Ana reminded him that it would only fuel her curiosity about business. He agreed with her. Instead, her father purchased the toys for the charity and her punishment was to wrap them all until the end of the week, when she and her father were to take them to Mr. Sanders. Also, they made her drop her law suit. The visit to Mr. Sanders was for her to apologize wasting his time as well. _Waste his time? He got 20 grand for his time!_, Phoebe thought ruefully.

The noise of keys in the front door shook her from her bitter thoughts and she looked at her alarm clock to see that it was already 5pm, so it was probably Teddy coming home from school.

A few moments later, as of if in a cue, he knocked on her door and peeked at her.

"Can I come in? Are you talking to me ever again?" She hasn't uttered a word to anybody since she received her punishment and Teddy started to worry about her.

"As a prisoner, I was striped off my civil rights, so you might as well" she dropped the toy she was wrapping and just sighed at her brother. So dramatic…

"Well, think of it as me relieving you from solitary confinement", he joked. He came into her room, still dressed in his uniform of slacks, shirt, tie and jacket and set next to her. As for Phoebe, apparently she never changed out of her pajamas.

"Whatever, Teddy" she wasn't so enthusiastic to have her brother there.

"OK, Phoebs, the silent treatment can't go on forever. Why don't you tell me what happened?"

"I'm sure your mother already filled you in. No need to bother" she was really pissed at her brother as well, always taking their mother's side.

"Not entirely, since you clamed up after they grounded you and there were some things you left out" he reminded her. "How come Becca Winston was pouring milk shake on your head?"

Becca Winston was a girl who went to Lakeside as well. Tall, blond, blue-eyed daughter of an industrial millionaire, she was the school bitch. Her parents spoiled her to no end and because of that she thought she could have anything she wanted, any time she wanted, and could treat people as trash, as she was above them all. Phoebe hated her, since the Grey kids were easy targets for her dirty gossip.

"I don't know how, but the bitch found out I was working at Clark's after school. She and her followers went there and sat on my station. I had no other choice but to go to their table. They tried to confuse me with their order to see if I would screw up and they could complain to Mr. Clark. I ended up getting everything right and she was pissed. One of the girls failed to hide her snickering and she got double pissed. Apparently, the milk shake on my head made her feel better" she snorted.

"My God, Phoebe! Do you think she was the one who tipped the paper off?"

Phoebe hated when her brother asked her stupid questions, so she just gave him her _What do you think? _look.

"Anyway, it's been all over school, even kids from my class were talking about it".

"It's a good thing I'm forbidden to go, then" she answered sarcastically, not really minding what the other kids thought about her. Teddy was different, though, she knew it bothered him.

"I'm sorry if you got caught in all that shit. I never meant to drag you down with me" she added honestly.

"I'm fine, Phoebs. Nothing worse or different from what I've been taking since we started high school". Teddy had already been a student at Lakeside when his parents divorced. Phoebe thought that since the kids have known him forever, he wouldn't be teased and bullied like she was. But it was the other way around, he got it even worse. For the life of her, she couldn't understand why.

"Regardless, I'm sorry"

Now she was feeling really bad, but he just shrugged and punched her in the arm, "Hey, no problem. Apparently you made me partner of a very lucrative brokerage", he tilted his head, daring her to explain. Phoebe groaned and recounted the fallout to her brother.

_**3 days earlier**_

"PTG Brokers? What the hell does it stand for?" Christian enquired, fuming at his daughter. Jose was now sitting with them, like a teenager who was being lectured by his parents for playing with the _bad_ kids. He sure looked terrified of Christian. Ana didn't want to be mad at him in front of Christian, but she was sending daggers his way.

"Phoebe and Theodore Grey Brokers. I thought PGG Brokers was kind of dumb" she said as explanation of not using her full name, Phoebe Grace Grey, "and I wanted Teddy to have a part of it, too. Whatever profit I made, Jose got 20% and me and Teddy 40% each".

"Did your brother help you in that façade as well?" Ana inquired, feeling completely blindsided.

"No, it was all me. Well, with a little help from Jose", Phoebe explained not wanting to get her brother in trouble. "The only thing he did for me was teach me how to calculate the risks of the market's fluctuation. I told him it was for a project from school".

Despite being pissed at the situation, Christian couldn't help but beam with pride at his boy. At only 16 and in high school he could do something that his grad school educated employees still messed up.

"As clever as you were, it was still wrong Phoebe. Criminal, even. You lied, omitted information, falsified signatures, blackmailed, got Jose involved wrongfully…the list goes on" Christian summarized.

"Hold on, Christian, I wasn't forced to do anything" Jose defended himself. "I'm not stupid" at that Christian had to hide his snort "I knew she was going to do some kind of venture in the stock market and that it would bring us quite some money".

"Some kind of venture, Mr. Rodriguez? It seems _kind_ of vague to trust your signature in _some_ kind of venture that a 14-year old child intended to launch, don't you think?" and now he couldn't hide his contempt at Jose's stupidity. Not even Ana could defend him now.

"We get the picture, Dad. I'm sorry I used you, Jose. And I'm sorry it had to end up this way, with that horrible article on the paper. But I'm not sorry I made half a million dollars in the last 6 months only. I'm good at it, Dad".

Both Christian and Ana were astonished. At his rate, their little girl was going to make her first million before she took her driver's license. But it was still wrong and they had to let her know that.

"Munchkin, I'm not discussing your talent or your intelligence for that matter", Christian started softly, using his nickname for her. "But still, you gambled and this time it paid off, but what if the market had behaved differently and you suffered an upset? What collaterals did you put in to cover your losses?"

Ana and Jose were listening to him, but not really understanding one word of what he was saying. Phoebe, on the other hand, knew exactly what her father was talking about.

"I listed my trust fund as collateral", she confessed, not looking her father in the eyes.

"Oh, Phoebe…see, that's what I'm talking about. You're ambitious, but you're still reckless of the consequences. You put a 30 million dollar trust as collateral for a business that net values one hundredth of that".

Phoebe's eyes were casted downwards, admitting defeat.

"You know you're gonna have to shut down this little venture of yours, don't you?" Ana asked her daughter.

"What? " Phoebe and Jose spoke simultaneously. Ana just glared at Jose and he shut up.

"You're a high school kid, you may have gotten lucky this time, but as far as I'm concerned what you did was illegal. You're not old enough to answer for your actions and I won't have you drag Jose down if you screw up somehow".

Phoebe listened to her mother quietly, but was biting her lips not to cry, or worse, scream at her for ruining her life yet again.

"Ana, you don't need to be so harsh" Christian intervened and Ana gasped. "I'm not saying that you're entirely wrong, Phoebe can't legally stand the consequences of her actions and for that I agree with you that she can't run the business anymore". Now it was Phoebe's turn to gasp. "However, we can't deny that what she did, business wise, was remarkable" he couldn't disguise the pride in his voice. "Not now, but when she's old enough, I believe she can make a name for herself".

Then he turned to his daughter, "for now, I want you to focus on your studies, graduate Lakeside with honors and be able to pick the school that you want. By then, I'm sure you'll have learned the ups and downs of the market to make a conscientious decision of what you really want do you".

"OK, but it doesn't really solve our immediate problem, does it?" Jose dared to ask and Phoebe groaned.

"I'll tell you what, Mr. Rodriguez. I'll buy you out".

"What the fuck are you doing, Christian?" Ana was furious.

"Anastasia, please, let me talk to your _boyfriend_ for a minute", he answered, making her even angrier. "From what I understood, you have a 20% share of the business and are the active and liable partner, at least on paper".

"Yes, Christian", Jose said as he was being talked down by a teacher.

"As I was saying, I'll buy you out. I'll analyze the portfolio you have and make my lawyers draw up a financial proposal; one that I'm sure will be quite satisfactory. My children will remain as shareholders, but will no longer have an active role in the company. I'll have the minority of shares, but as the legal trustee of Phoebe's trust fund, I won't have any objections from the other shareholders to take it over from here, right Phoebe?"

"No, sir" was all she could say. Her father beat her at her own game. That's why he was THE Christian Grey, CEO and a freaking genius. Once more she saw that she would have to learn a lot to even play at the same league as his. For now, she had to see her company become part of GEH.

_**Present time**_

"I can't believe Dad pulled that off!" Teddy said incredulously. "No wonder Mom is not talking to Jose. You shouldn't have involved him, Phoebs"

"Don't lecture me! Thanks to me, he's a half million dollars richer now! And he was the only adult I knew who was dumb enough to sign up for me. He's a tool".

"Don't talk like that, Phoebs! He's never done anything against us" Teddy admonished her.

"He's still a douchebag". "Let me ask you something, do you like him?"

Teddy was on the spot now. "Well, Mom likes him…"

"Not the answer to my question, counselor" Phoebe presses her older brother

"I plead the 5th your honor" he says already standing up to leave.

"I thought so" Phoebe smirks. By the way, Dad is picking me up tomorrow to deliver these God damned gifts and afterwards I'm going to his house. It's our weekend with him". At this reminder, Teddy stiffens.

"You know, since you dread it so much, you don't have to go. I don't know why you still bother. You avoid Dad like the plague and end up locked up in that lab anyway".

It was no secret to Phoebe that her brother took their mother's side on the divorce. He's always been a momma's boy, but she thought he would've outgrown it by now. What she didn't understand was the aloofness towards their father. He even built a freaking science lab in his house just for Teddy!

"I don't avoid him, we just don't have a lot in common, that's all" he justified. "But I'm coming with you. If you're going, I'm going", he said, leaving her room.

This has always confused Phoebe to no end. It was clear Teddy didn't want to be there, but he never failed to accompany her, as if he needed to protect her. But protect her from what? She shook her head to get rid off these thoughts and resumed her task of wrapping toys.

xxxx

It was already past 8pm, but Christian was still in the office. Aside from dinner cooked by Mrs. Taylor there was nothing waiting for him at home. Even if he left earlier, he would just end up continue working in his study. This rigorous routine in the past decade made his business grow even more. He was now one of the 3 richest men in the USA, as the net value of GEH skyrocketed, with subsidiaries in every continent of the planet. Without his family, there was nothing left for him but his company.

He was going into some spreadsheets when his Blackberry rang. It was his father.

"Hi, Dad" he answered tiredly.

"Hello, son. You sound tired…still at the office?" Carrick asked, concern laced in his voice. If in the past he rarely called his son, it used to be Grace's job, Carrick now played a more active role in Christian's life. He didn't know if it was maturity from both sides of the aftermath of the divorce, he hoped it was the first, but he certainly enjoyed it.

"Yes, Dad, just wrapping some things up for a meeting tomorrow. Anyway, everything ok?"

"Yes, your mother and I are fine. Worried about you and the kids of course". Christian was sure he was talking about the article. Just the mere thought of it infuriated him to no end.

"If you're referring to that fucking article, don't worry, I took care of it. As of today that fucking reporter no longer works at the Star. And I made sure he will find it quite hard to find a job anywhere else, unless if it's to write the fucking horoscope!"

"Getting the reporter fired may placate your anger, but it certainly doesn't fix things" Carrick retorted. Christian called his father immediately after he heard about Mr. Sanders and Phoebe's preposterous idea to sue for emancipation, but they have yet to talk about the article.

"I know, you're right. We just have to wait for it to die down. I'm sure by the time the week is over they will find another rich kid scandal and forget all about Phoebe. Maybe Paris Hilton will step out with no panties on, who knows?" he attempted to convince himself.

"Son, you know that's not what I'm worried about. They're speculating the reasons for the divorce. It sure picked everyone's curiosity; especially since you never re-married".

"And I never will", Christian cut off.

"Ok, ok, that's not the point now. What if the journalists start digging up information again?"

"Dad, the records are sealed, right? Nobody but you and Ana's attorney have access to those files, isn't it?"

"Yes, Christian, due to the nature of the case, and the children involved, the records are sealed. But it's already been 10 years, maybe a clerk will forget about the confidentiality of the documents and slip up somehow…you know the damage it can cause. Not only to your business, but to your children as well. Don't you think it's time they knew the truth? Especially Teddy; everyone sees the way he acts towards you. God knows what Ana told him".

Christian listened to his father wearily. It was not the first time he brought it up, and surely it wouldn't be the last. Exerting all the self-control he could muster, he answered his father.

"They will never know, Dad! I won't have my children know all that fuckupdness. It's my past, I can't change that, but I'll certain not taint my kids with all that shit. Let them think their mother divorced me because I was a son of a bitch control freak. It's not too far from the truth anyway".

Carrick sighed, but had to comply with his son. "Still, we'd better talk about it to get our stories straight. I have a feeling the kids, at least Phoebe, will want to talk about it with me or your mother. Can I entice you with a late supper at your old man's house?"

Christian had to laugh at his father attempt to break the tension, but acquiesced. "Alright, Dad, I think I can have a drink or two with my old man".

"Fine, son. I'll have one of my mean cocktails with your name on it when you get here. See you soon, son".

"Bye, Dad" Christian said, already dreading the conversation he would have with his father slash divorce lawyer.

_**Kind of a cliffhanger! I promise you the secrets will be revealed in the next chapter, please keep reading! Let me know what you think! Suggestions are welcome as well!**_


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